Relocating to Austin... not a ThreAD, but yeah.. a bit of a ThreAD

[Grace Preston]

So.. the real world job is relocating me to Austin, likely in February of next year.

I need some suggestions in regards to where one should consider living, where one should NOT consider living, etc. Obviously, I'll be apartment living at least for the first year or so... my job has moved me so much in the past year that I cannot commit to a mortgage until I see more stability in my location. So mainly, I just need intel on parts of town to avoid, and parts of town to consider. Don't want to go over 1400/month for a 2 bedroom... would ideally like to stay below 1200.

I know the job will put me in and around the Domain area.... so not having to cross through downtown to get to work would be ideal.. I know traffic in Austin is a bitch.

Thanks!!

[Austin Ellen]

Hi Grace,
Welcome to Austin. Brace yourself for the traffic - it's still bad,bad,bad. I just stay up the the NW part of town. Across from the domain. I love it up here. And you can find a 2 bedroom in the $1200 to $1400 range here too.
I've lived all over Austin but this is my favorite. To me, it's not that crowded....yet!

[sydmo]

the domain area is gonna be a bit more pricey, but it's really an awesome spot. South on mopac by the greenbelt (barton skyway) are less cost and not much of a drive headed north, even in traffic times-joking (get a text tag) even further south anywhere around William cannon, sunset valley, stassney, the southwest area is cool and in that cost range. don't go east of 35, there's some great spots but that traffic to the domain will suck. Good Luck Lady, welcome to Austin. Barton skyway area would be best, cause that's where I live

[Kitty Bunny Fuck]

ThreAD HIGHJACKER HERE- you are pretty cute so you get a pass

[quzi]

Wells Branch is sorta NNE of the Domain area and seems to have some decent apartment prices. Plenty of places in all directions from the Domain within a couple miles.



Being in the Domain has the advantage of a lot of places within walking distance (as some are calling it Austin's second downtown).



Further away you have Pflugerville to the east, Round Rock/Georgetown NEN, Cedar Park NW and Leander north of there. Going out towards those directions, the 45 is a toll road,183A north of 45, and Mopac north of Palmer (there's one exit past Palmer that's free) to the 45 is toll. Probably not as bad as DFW area but it's starting to get there.

[Grace Preston]

Thanks y'all. The last time I spent any REAL time in Austin... Domain wasn't really even a thing yet.. Arboretum was still the "it" spot... so I am close to clueless on that whole area, lol. But, we're talking 2006-ish... so aside from a couple of brief visits to Austin, I haven't been there in a long while.

I've spotted a couple of apartment options within close range of my future work spot that are within range.. so it looks like the relocation may not be too arduous. They have me in San Antonio for 2 months prior to the permanent location in Austin... so I'll have the ability to do some in person house hunting.

Looking forward to being back in Texas. This Texas girl can't deal with the cold here in the frozen north!!!

[GeorgeAus]

East 7th street is changing. Some apartments on South Congress which has n still changing. I remember seeing an add for condos and apartments near zilker park.

[winn dixie]

Welcome Ms. Grace

[mathguy]

The entire Domain area is great. It's a very "it" spot for the young professional (and even slightly older/more mature) crowd.

The Arboretum area and Gateway shopping are great too.

The other place that is nice if you want closer in is the Triangle area near Lamar/Guadalupe.

Yes, traffic is bad in Austin b/c we are now the 10th largest city in the US and our metro area has climbed up to near 2.5mil people. Austin is a major metro area so yea that hasn't helped. The main issue is with all the insane growth over the past 2-3 decades (Austin has been #1-#3 on virtually every "best places to live" list for the last 20+ years) is that the infrastructure of the highways didn't keep up. We have far too few major interconnects and lanes for the number of people in the metro area.

However, even now, it's still nothing at all like Houston or LA or NY traffic (those are all some of the worst commutes in the US). Though I will say, it wasn't long ago (last year I believe) that the I35/Riverside section was one of the top 10 congested freeway sections in the US :/ I believe it was #9 or #10. Most of the rest are in LA, Houston, Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, NYC.

[Champagne Brown]

I grew in the NW area.. Well Branch, Pflugerville, and Round Rock... You'll love it..

[Frauenheld]

Lot's of new apartments on parmer north/west of the domain / mopac . Most would be good. In my opinion.

[Humpty Dumpty]

Austin is overpriced. Just like the ladies of this board. If I was to move back, I would stick to Burnet road, upper airport Blvd, Hyde Park etc. Those neighborhoods are mostly white so that's good.

[Old-T]

Overpriced? Hmmmm....
You don't seem to travel around a lot. Austin prices are not "low" for the US, but they certainly aren't "high".

[Humpty Dumpty]

The only places more expensive than Austin would be California, New York City, and Miami. I've traveled quite a bit around the United States and I've taken shits in parking lots every from Seattle to Baltimore.

[Champagne Brown]

Originally Posted by Humpty Dumpty

taken shits in parking lots from Seattle to Baltimore.

^^This guy